Shaw University
Raleigh, Wake County, North Carolina
Marker Inscription
Shaw University. Founded 1865 by Baptist missionary Henry Martin Tupper. Chartered 1875; named for benefactor Elijah Shaw of Mass.
Erected by North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources
The Story
Founded in 1865 by Baptist missionary Henry Martin Tupper in the first months after emancipation, Shaw University became one of the earliest historically Black colleges in the South. Chartered in 1875, it was named for benefactor Elijah Shaw of Massachusetts and went on to educate generations of Black ministers, teachers, doctors, and leaders. It pioneered coeducation and professional training for African Americans.
Why it matters
Shaw stood at the forefront of the great Reconstruction-era effort to educate the freed people, building Black leadership that would shape American life for a century to come.
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Related people
- · Henry Martin Tupper
- · Elijah Shaw
Related events
- · Founding of Shaw University, 1865
Themes & tags
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